Share this:

GOP State Chairman Ed Cox put his now-support for the party’s designated gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio in writing, sending the above letter to the party’s county chairs last week. Wrote Cox:

With yet another disastrous budget by Albany Democrats, now more than ever we must stand together and support Rick Lazio in his campaign to be the next governor of New York State.
After an extensive grassroots screening process, Rick Lazio was the sole candidate chosen by your wide-open Republican State Convention to run for governor on the Republican line.
Rick is a credible and experienced candidate. He is a strong advocate for our Republican values and has the ability and experience to run an effective state-wide campaign and to govern New York in accordance with those values.

The chairman never mentioned Carl Paladino, the Buffalo developer who petitioned his way onto the GOP ballot after failing to earn the 25 percent of support necessary at the convention. Still, Cox emphasized the contrast between Lazio and Paladino by calling Lazio “credible” twice in the letter. Lazio, speaking Friday, suggested Paladino is a “shock jock” outside the tradition of New York Republican leaders. Paladino’s supporters welcome that characterization.

Indeed, Cox’s diminution of him is not surprising. (Bob McCarthy has some more of it here.) Paladino has called for Cox’s ouster. Cox’s on-the-record praise for Lazio is interesting, however, in light of a similar letter he sent suggesting he was not the party’s best shot and praising Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy, an enrolled Democrat who Cox unsuccessfully attempted to boost onto the pimary ballot.

Lazio and Cox have had an uneasy truce since Lazio was nominated at the convention.

About Capitol Confidential

Capitol Confidential gathers the best coverage of New York politics and puts it all together. Each section - Capitol, The State Worker, New York on the Potomac, and Voices - represents a unique facet of the political scene. The Capitol section features coverage from the Times Union Capitol bureau. The State Worker is dedicated to state worker issues. New York on the Potomac offers news of interest to New Yorkers from Washington. And Voices features the best of everything else, pointing you to columnists and bloggers from across the Web.